Bethlehem/PNN/

The Ministry of Health today said the death toll from the ongoing Israeli occupation forces aggression against the Gaza Strip and the West Bank since October 7 has risen to more than 5,795 dead (5,700 in the Gaza Strip, 95 in West Bank) and about 18,000 wounded (16,000 in the Gaza Strip, and 1,836 in the West Bank).

It said that 70 percent of the dead were children, women, and elderly and that 2360 were children (40% of the dead), while 1,292 were women and 295 were elderly.

The Ministry of Health said 20 aid trucks that entered the Gaza Strip yesterday constituted only 3% of the daily import rate before the aggression.

It said it monitored cases of smallpox, scabies, and diarrhea, as a result of a poor sanitary environment and the use of water from unsafe sources.

The Ministry pointed out that three additional hospitals were out of service, bringing the number of hospitals that stopped working as a result of the bombing or running out of fuel to 10 hospitals out of 35 in the Gaza Strip, which represents 28%, and that 10,600 liters of fuel were secured from the World Health Organization and UNRWA to al-Shifa Hospital.

In addition, five hospitals had set up tents on their premises to accommodate the overcrowding, and their daily consumption of medical consumables was equivalent to their monthly consumption in the days before the aggression, while the shortage of safe water reached three liters per capita per day out of the 50 liters to 100 liters recommended by the World Health Organization.

The Ministry of Health estimated the number of displaced people in the Gaza Strip at about 1.4 million, with 685,000 displaced among other families, 565,000 displaced in 148 schools affiliated with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Refugees (UNRWA), 101,000 in mosques, churches and public places, and 70,000 in 67 public schools.

The report indicated that 42% of the housing units in the Gaza Strip were destroyed as a result of the violent Israeli bombardment since the start of the aggression on October 7.

The number of completely destroyed housing units reached 26,684; 140,500 were partially destroyed, and nine hospitals were out of service after their destruction, in addition to 178 educational institutions, including 140 government schools and 20 UNRWA schools.

The Ministry of Health report monitored 250 attacks against health personnel, health facilities, and ambulances, during which 42 health personnel were killed, more than 34 were injured, while 50 ambulances were damaged, 23 of which were out of service, and 69 attacks were recorded on health facilities, leading to end service in seven of them. They are Ahli Arab Baptist Hospital, Beit Hanoun Hospital, Al-Durrah Children's Hospital, the Red Crescent Society's First Aid Center, Mohammad Rehabilitation Center, Al-Karama Hospital, and Al-Wafa Hospital for Medical Rehabilitation and Specialized Surgery, in addition to threats of eviction that affected 24 hospitals, including 2,000 beds.

The Ministry of Health stressed that the shelter centers are overloaded by 250%, which poses a risk of disease outbreaks.

The statement indicated that 9,000 cancer patients depend on chemotherapy to survive, provided by the Turkish hospital, which relies on only one electric generator, while the time period for dialysis sessions for more than 1,000 patients has been reduced from 4 hours to two and a half hours.

The report indicated that at least 130 premature babies who depend on incubators face the risk of death due to scarcity of resources and lack of electricity, and about 50,000 pregnant women face challenges in accessing health care as a result of attacks on health facilities and workers.

It explained that there are about 166 unsafe births every day, and it is expected that 5,500 women will give birth next month in the Gaza Strip.

In the same context, hospitals in the Gaza Strip indicated that they had received 1,450 reports of missing persons still under the rubble, including 800 children.

According to hospital data, the occupation committed 24 massacres within 24 hours, claiming the lives of 266 people, including 117 children, most of them in southern Gaza, pointing out that the occupation committed 574 massacres that left 3,600 deaths and many are still under the rubble since the start of the aggression against the Gaza Strip.